PUEBLO, Colo. (AP/CBS4) — A law enforcement plane carrying two people has gone missing near Pueblo.

A spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration confirms that the single-engine Piper Super Cruiser was hired by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Department and departed from Pueblo Memorial Airport Friday morning. The pilot was due back at the Pueblo airport around 10 a.m. but did not return. The spokesman said the plane was hired “for law enforcement purposes” but did not elaborate.

The Pueblo sheriff’s office said Friday afternoon that they were searching for the plane in San Isabel National Forest.

(credit: CBS)

Search teams have set up a staging area at the high school in the town of Rye. There are reports that the wreckage has been found but they haven’t been confirmed.